In response to, "Vegetarians have reasons for why they don't eat meat" (Dec. 8), perhaps Mr. Zufall should update his research before claiming that vegetables and plants are incapable of feeling pain and not subject to his scruples regarding eating sentient beings.
Researchers from Michigan State University have discovered that plants have a rudimentary nerve structure, which allows them to feel pain. According to the peer-reviewed journal Plant Physiology, plants are capable of identifying danger, signaling that danger to other plants and marshaling defenses against perceived threats. According to botanist Bill Williams of the Helvetica Institute, "plants not only seem to be aware and to feel pain, they can even communicate."
This research has prompted the Swiss government to pass the first-ever Plant Bill of Rights. It concludes that plants have moral and legal protections, and Swiss citizens have to treat them appropriately. The Penn State Vegetarians Club would do well to investigate this data before claiming to be superior to those of us who do not subscribe to the idea that eating meat is morally wrong.
Stephen Johnson
Class of 2007
